After the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, the flight numbers of the jetliners that crashed in New York, Washington, D.C. and rural Pennsylvania were retired.

A majority of airlines delete those numbers to relieve family members of crash victims from further reminders, said Joe Hopkins, media relations officer for United Airlines in Chicago.

“It has nothing to do with superstition,” he said in a phone interview with the Daily.

“Why have those numbers out there that evoke painful memories for their loved ones?”

Federal Aviation Administration representatives said flight number changes are not FAA policies, and that the decision is up to the airlines.

– Amber Billings

Plane crashes in United States for the last 10 years

1992

Feb. 15 – Air Transport International Flight 805 in Toledo, Ohio. All four aboard died; pilot error.

March 22 – USAir Flight 405 from LaGuardia airport in New York. Twenty-seven of the 51 aboard died; failure to de-ice plane after delay.

June 8 – GP Express Airlines Flight 861 in Anniston, Ala. Three of the six aboard died; crew error.

1993

April 14 – American Airlines Flight 102 at Dallas/Ft. Worth International Airport. No fatalities; pilot error.

July 26 – Bombardier test-flight at Byers, Kans. All three aboard died; crew error.

Dec. 1 – Northwest Airlink Flight 5719 in Hibbing, Minn. All 18 aboard died; crew error.

1994

Jan. 7 – Atlantic Coast Airlines Flight 6291 in Columbus, Ohio. Five of the nine aboard died; crew error.

July 2 – USAir Flight 1016 in Charlotte, N.C. Thirty-seven of the 57 aboard died; windshear problems.

Sept. 8 – USAir Flight 427 in Aliquippa, Penn. All 132 aboard died; loss of controls after coming into contact with wake vortex of a Delta Air Lines flight upon approach to Pittsburgh International Airport.

Oct. 31 – American Eagle Flight 4184 in Roselawn, Ind. All 68 aboard died; ice build-up.

Nov. 22 – TransWorld Airlines flight in St. Louis, Mo. No fatalities; collision with privately owned Cessna 441 during takeoff.

Dec. 13 – American Eagle flight in Morrisville, N.C. Fifteen of the 20 aboard died; pilot error.

1995

Feb. 16 – Air Transport International flight in Kansas City, Mo. All three aboard died; loss of directional control during takeoff.

June 8 – Valujet Flight 597 in Atlanta. No fatalities; engine fire during takeoff.

Aug. 21 – Atlantic Southeast Airlines flight in Carrollton, Ga. Eight of the 29 aboard died; engine propeller blade malfunction.

Sept. 22 – U.S. Air Force Flight 27 at Elmendorf Air Force Base outside Anchorage, Alaska. All 24 aboard died; engine failure after collision with birds.

Dec. 20 – Tower Air Flight 41 at Kennedy International Airport in New York. No fatalities; aircraft hit ice patch on runway upon takeoff.

1996

Feb. 19 – Continental Airlines Flight 1943 in Houston, Texas. No fatalities; crew error.

May 11 – Valujet Flight 592 at Everglades National Park in Florida. All 110 aboard died; fire caused by improperly packed oxygen generators upon takeoff from Miami.

July 6 – Delta Air Lines Flight 1288 in Pensacola, Fla. Two of the 146 aboard died; uncontained engine failure upon takeoff.

July 17 – TransWorld Airlines Flight 800 in East Moriches, N.Y. All 230 aboard died; cause unknown.

Oct. 19 – Delta Air Lines Flight 554 in LaGuardia airport in New York. No fatalities; hazardous weather conditions and pilot error.

Nov. 19 – United Express Flight 5925 in Quincy, Ill. All 12 aboard died; collision with privately owned Beech King Air 200 on runway.

Dec. 22 – Airborne Express Flight 827 in Giles County, W.Va. All six aboard died; crew error.

1997

Jan. 9 – Comair Flight 3272 in Ida, Mich. All 29 aboard died; icy conditions.

July 31 – Federal Express Flight 14 in Newark, N.J. No fatalities; crew error.

Aug. 7 – Fine Air Flight 101 in Miami. All four aboard died plus killing one person on the ground; cargo loading error.

1998

Feb. 9 – American Airlines flight at O¡Hare International Airport in Chicago. No fatalities; early landing sheared off landing gear.

Nov. 1 – Airtran Airways Flight 867 in Atlanta. No fatalities; mechanical failure.

Nov. 11 – Asiana flight in Anchorage, Alaska. No fatalities; crew error.

1999

Jan. 23 – Colgan Air flight in Hyannis, Mass. No fatalities; no information given.

June 1 – American Airlines Flight 1420 in Little Rock, Ark. Twelve of the 143 died; hazardous weather conditions.

Sept. 9 – TransWorld Airlines Flight 600 in Nashville, Tenn. No fatalities; crew error.

Oct. 31 – EgyptAir Flight 990 in the Atlantic Ocean. All 217 aboard died; undetermined cause after takeoff from New York.

2000

Jan. 31 – Alaska Airlines Flight 261 in the Pacific Ocean about 20 miles from Los Angeles. All 88 aboard died; stabilizing control problems.

Feb. 16 – Emery Worldwide Flight 17 in Sacramento, Calif. All three aboard died; in-flight cargo shift or mechanical failure.

March 5 – Southwest Airlines Flight 1455 in Burbank, Calif. No fatalities; too steep of a descent upon landing.

May 21 – Executive Airlines flight in Wilkes-Barre, Penn. All 19 aboard died; engine failure.

Dec. 21 – Everts Air Fuel flight in Cook Inlet, Alaska. Both crew members died; unknown.

2001

Feb. 8 – Northern Illinois Flight Center flight in Beaver Island, Mich. Two of the six aboard died; tree and terrain collision.

Sept. 11 – American Airlines Flight 11 in Manhattan, N.Y. All 92 aboard died; hijacking, crashed into One World Trade Center.

Sept. 11 – United Airlines Flight 175 in Manhattan, N.Y. All 65 aboard died; hijacking, crashed into Two World Trade Center.

Sept. 11 – American Airlines Flight 77 in Washington. All 64 aboard died; hijacking, crashed into the Pentagon.

Sept. 11 – United Airlines Flight 93 in Somerset, Penn. All 45 aboard died; hijacking, crashed into rural field.

Oct. 10 – Penair Flight 350 in Dillingham, Alaska. Nine of the 10 aboard died; unknown.

Nov. 12 – American Airlines Flight 587 in Belle Harbor, N.Y. All 260 aboard died plus five people on the ground; in-flight break-up.

Dec. 1 – Air Carriers Inc. flight in Bessemer, Ala. Both crew members died; unknown.

Dec. 6 – Trans Air Link flight in Haulover Beach, Fla. No fatalities; unknown.

2002

March 28 – Smithsonian Institution flight in Elliot Bay, Wash. No fatalities; undetermined mechanical problem.

June 17 – Hawkins and Powers Aviation flight in Walker, Calif. All three aboard died; in-flight break-up.

July 26 – Federal Express Flight 1478 in Tallahassee, Fla. No fatalities; tree impact.

– Source: airdisaster.com